Life's a Beach, or Regarding a Curiosity
by Calico Yorki
Summary: Five girls of the Teen Titans are given a week-long vacation. What could possibly go wrong? Rated M for content that may or may not grow over chapters to be more...Well, raunchy is the word. But that's not the whole story. Mystery thar be! Read on!
1. Day One, First Part

Sun! Surf! Sand!

Raven stared incredulously. "...You have _got_ to be kidding me."

Spread out around herself, Starfire, Kole, Jinx, and Cheshire (The latter two of which had been so insistent on coming along that no one could bear to say no) was a pristine beach, the sand interrupted by only a large beach shack. Although Raven had known about the little event for a couple of days, and although she herself was in a bikini like the rest, it was only just now sinking in:

Yes, she had been dragged along to a private beach with the other girls.

As Starfire and Kole immediately dashed off to frolick in the waves and Cheshire disappeared in her mysterious way, Raven steadfastly refused to head onto the beach. Yet when a slender fingertip swiftly attempt to goose her, Raven whirled around and bounced Jinx away with an energy field. _**"Try it again. I dare you."**_ Her eyes quickly lit up in an angry white.

Following an expert flip, Jinx landed on her feet with spritely grace. Giggling, the fey girl said brightly, "Don't be such a _buzzkill_, Raven! You, me, and the other three girls get to have a week-long vacation on an island with _no one else around!_ No boys, no monsters, no fights! Enjoy it!" She proceeded to energetically cartwheel down to the beach, laughing all the way.

With a sigh, Raven quietly walked down as well. She sat in a boulder's shadow, folded her legs, and began to meditate. "Azarath...Metrion...Zinthos...Azarath...Metrion...Zinthos..." Soon enough, her mind began to calm. Maybe this wasn't so bad. Even as Jinx loudly shrieked about something, Raven remained calm.

The waves crashing nearby, the wind whistling up above, the pleasant shade she was in...Topped off with Starfire and Kole's jubilant laughter, it was a wonderful feeling that arose in Raven. Perhaps it wouldn't be _too_ bad here. Like Jinx had said - No boys. No monsters. No fights. She just needed to relax.

Despite Jinx _still_ screaming in the background, Raven ignored it. Probably just got her toe pinched by a crab or something stupid like that. Eyes gently closed, Raven's breathing calmed to its lowest state.

...

Eyes silently opening, Raven gave a blank stare into the upside-down mask before her. "Ahahah. Cute, Cheshire. As if we don't get enough of that from Robin. What do you want?" The tanskinned, masked girl remained silent.

While Cheshire spun around to land in front of her, Raven noticed that Cheshire seemed to be shaking from...Was it _laughter?_ As she watched, Cheshire produced a scrap of pink-striped black cloth which she dangled before Raven's eyes. It took a few moments, but it suddenly dawned on Raven.

"...You didn't." She did. So _that_ was why Jinx was screaming. Indeed, as Jinx's screams drew closer, the rock behind Raven abruptly cracked and shuddered. The entire boulder splintered into shards of rock then dissolved into more sand, allowing a blushing pink and utterly wroth Jinx to leapfrog over Raven and lunge in an attempt to throttle Cheshire.

Cheshire, who took off at top speed with the untied lower half of Jinx's bikini lifted up above her like she had captured the enemy flag. Despite herself, Raven couldn't help but chuckle.

"If not peaceful, this little vacation should be _interesting._"


	2. Day One, Middle Part

After a while, Raven managed to catch up with Jinx and Cheshire.

Flatly as usual, the dark heroine said with no small amount of pleased sarcasm, "Glad to see you two have settled your differences." Jinx, stil blushing and still bearing quite a scowl, had managed to retrieve her bikini's bottom half. Save for the fact that it now had a large, semi-circular hole on the lower-right edge of the back. Meanwhile, a classic over-sized, stylized bump smoked form the upper-left of Cheshire's head.

With a sigh that was meant to prevent any laughter, Raven said with clearly evident enjoyment at Jinx's embarrassment, "Have you two had a fun day so far?" Face turned away, Jinx seethed with anger and repeatedly muttered about how much fun she and Cheshire had _not_ had. Cheshire, on the other hand, nodded rapidly and gleefully in response to Raven's question. Raven nodded sagely. "Good. I'm going to look through the beach shack. Stay out of trouble." Exerting her soul-self, Raven disappeared.

Immediately, Cheshire turned back to Jinx and stared. Specifically, she stared down at Jinx's chest. The masked girl also peeked around to take a look at where Jinx's bikini top was tied. Catching her gaze, Jinx snarled, "Oh, I _dare you_ to try that little stunt again. You'll _really_ regret it this time." Turning, she walked off.

Cheshire stared after Jinx for a few moments more. She never spoke a word. For a moment, her head cocked to the side in thought.

Soon, however, she was following after Jinx with her usual light footfalls. Jinx noticed how Cheshire kept her distance and smirked. "Yeah. That's what I thought."

Yet she looked away before she could catch Cheshire bending very slightly at the knees.

Jinx said with a smirk, "Good thing you're a fast learner, Cheshire."

She never even heard Cheshire's approach.

**...**

Upon reaching the beach 'shack' within moments of opening the portal, Raven began to look around - And quickly realized that calling it a 'shack' did the building no justice. The place actually had a _second_ story, complete with a very well-built spiral staircase.

One communal bedroom that took up about half of the building's upper floor held a total of twelve beds, all with plenty of room to get up and move around as well as small bedstands. The other half consisted of a fully stocked kitchen, complete with filled fridge, cupboards, and fireproofing around the appliances and walls.

As for the lower floor, roughly two-thirds of it consisted of a bathing room built around some kind of hotspring. The rest of it - Open to the air - Contained numerous beach toys, equipment for simple sports, a telephone, a television set, and although it had clearly seen better days, a desktop computer that still turned on and worked well enough upon Raven checking on the thing. Cheshire and Kole had shown more knowledge on computers, so Raven would leave it to them to decide how well the thing worked.

Also, once she moved outside, Raven noticed that the entire structure was built well above the ground and within some kind of storm wall - Not only with a four-foot tall main wall that covered the entire half facing the sea, but also a two-and-a-half-foot wide trench beyond _that_ which would deflect water into a pair of troughs into the nearby jungle. To top it all off, the wall had two sets of wide steps and there was a bridge over the trench conjoined to the outermost of said sets - So that anyone who couldn't fly would easily be able to cross.

"Well," Raven said quietly, with a bemused look on her face as she gave the beach 'shack' one last look, "I suppose this means the League paid for this place. No way would any of the Teen Titans _I_ know be able to afford this kind of island luxury." Taking to the air, Raven moved out towards the surf once again. Her unrushed journey soon brought her back to where the group had started out. There she proceeded to cross her legs and hover in place so that she could look over the scene before her.

Still out in the water, Starfire and Kole laughed gleefully as they splashed each other. Both of them had yet to use any of their powers once thus far. A little smile crossed Raven's face - It was nice to have a chance to unwind. Despite how Jinx was proving to be unusually irritating today, and despite the previous issues between said young ex-villainess and Cheshire, everything seemed to be going fine.

Distinct muttering and huffing in a young female voice could be heard coming up the beach. _Speak of the devil,_ Raven mused to herself. _Looks like I missed something interesting._ Jinx was completely flush with rage and embarrassment, desperately trying to hold her undone bikini top to herself. With a sigh, Raven held her hand towards Jinx.

Small fields of dark energy grasping the untied ends of Jinx's bikini, Raven carefully re-did the straps so that Jinx was covered once again. Seeing how flustered the pinkhaired girl was, it was no wonder she couldn't tie it back herself. Hovering down closer, Raven's eyes showed the unasked question.

After practically spitting out her thanks, Jinx grumbled, "I know what you're going to ask. _Cheshire_ is what happened. She should still be playing in the sandcastle I made for her." Cackling, Jinx headed off to find something to do.

The choice of terminology Jinx had used disturbed Raven quite abit. Heading towards the source of Cheshire's aura, Raven soon found her: Within a large, upright ring of what appeared to be condensed sand, upside-down, limbs eaglespread, hands and feet sealed into the ring's edges.

"Huh." was all that Raven could utter to the sight before her. Legs crossed again, Raven merely hovered in place and stared. Jinx _had_ said before that her power came from the ground beneath her feet...

Raven asked, "You doing okay in there, Cheshire?" The masked girl simply nodded. Raven nodded back. "Good. Just hanging out?"

Cheshire stared blankly through her mask. Even without her eyes being shown, Raven didn't need her empathy to know what she was staring like that over.

Raven's blue-purple orbs leveled evenly with the off-green lenses of Cheshire's mask.

"...Sorry. I'll try to get you out of there." She began to exert her magic.

Nodding once more, Cheshire waited patiently.

Seeing as that was all she _could_ do.


	3. Day One, Last Part

Once Cheshire was free, she disappeared once again.

Dearly hoping that Cheshire would keep herself out of trouble, Raven got to looking around. Jinx had seemed quite upset by Cheshire's little pranks, and it would really be best to make sure she was okay. She had really started to grow on Raven over the past few weeks.

Soon enough, Raven managed to find Jinx sitting below a palm tree, a little past the edge of the island's small jungle. With a sigh, Raven hovered downward and sat down next to her. The two girls sat together in silence. Jinx continually lifted up a palmful of sand only to slowly watch it fall in a narrow line out of the bottom of her fist. Raven kept her legs folded up against herself and rested against her knees with elbows crossed.

After a few minutes, Jinx said quietly, "Do you think I let the cat out of the bag with how I 'handled' Cheshire back there?" Having found a little spiral shell in one palmful of sand, Jinx set it back down gently. A giggle escaped her as the startled hermit crab within popped out to survey its surroundings and scuttled away as fast as its little legs would take it. "Run run run, little guy! Don't worry, I won't get'cha!"

Indigo gaze fixed on Jinx for a bit, Raven eventually gave a quiet sigh. "Well, even though what you did can't be explained away with bad luck, there's nothing to say it was magic. Plus, no one else besides you two saw it other than me. Not to mention the fact that Cheshire probably won't go around talking about it too freely." For a few moments, Raven managed to keep a straight face as Jinx stared incredulously. Inevitably, though, a smile broke her composure. Jinx grinned as well, and the two promptly broke down into laughter.

Done laughing after a couple of minutes, Raven and Jinx both stood up. "You know, Raven," Jinx said, "I'm really enjoying the Titans more than I _ever_ enjoyed my 'friends' at the H.I.V.E. And even if the truth comes out about my magic, I can still hold my own even if one or two baddies know there's more to me than bad luck." She snickered under her breath. "How funny is it that I can say 'baddies' so easily when _I_ was one last year, huh?" It made Raven quite glad to see that she had calmed down.

In her usual quiet voice, Raven said plainly, "If people start wondering about your powers before you're completely ready to be out-and-out, I promise I'll do what I can to stand up for you, Jinx." Her soft smile widened. "You're a Titan now. And although it might seem strange for _me_ to be the one who says this...The Titans always have each other's backs." She saw a rather surprised look cross Jinx's face.

Suddenly, Raven formed a dark energy field behind herself. A small figure could be heard bouncing off with a dull _thunk!_ before rustling off into the jungle. With a heavy sigh, Raven turned to stare after the retreating figure. "Looks like this whole 'bikini-snatching' thing with Cheshire is beginning to get a little out of control." She turned to look back at Jinx.

Jinx, who was nowhere to be found.

Worried for a moment, Raven quickly gained an exasperated look on her face as crackling noises and pink sparks were followed by a distinct rustling and snapping sound up above. "_God_, Jinx. You are _incorrigible_," Raven snapped.

Those were the last words Raven got in edgewise before the palm tree's entire mass of leaves fell on top of her.

Jinx cackled uncontrollably, smacking her knee furiously. Up until her chest suddenly felt drafty, and light footsteps could be heard dashing through the sand.

Howling with rage and embarrassment, Jinx covered herself and took off in pursuit.

"This is _seriously_ beginning to get old, Cheshiii - AUGH!"

_TWANG-ang-ang-ang-ang..._

When Jinx became reorientated, she found herself upside down. Somehow, Cheshire had not only rigged _this_ trap, but now a couple of bolas bound her wrists.

Blush growing hotter and hotter, Jinx saw Raven levitate out of the ground nearby. The dark heroine spit a large strand of palm leaf out of her mouth.

Jinx gulped nervously. "Um, R, Raven...Raven! You know I was only playing around, heheh! Ahah, no hard feelings, right?" No response was given. Jinx quivered. "...R...Right...?"

To her horror, Raven turned and began to hover back towards the main beach.

"Wait! You can't leave me like this! Not all night!"

Raven turned. "No, not all night. Of course not."

Jinx sighed. "Then...You'll get me down?"

Raven smiled. "Of course I'll get you down, Jinx."

Jinx's eyes lit up. "Thank you! Thank you!"

...

"W...Well? Aren't you going to get me down?"

"Soon enough. Around sunset, maybe."

"_What?_ Hey, hey! Come back right now!"

"Hey! Starfire, Kole! Come here!"

"DON'T! _DON'T COME BACK!_"

Quite an interesting first day to start their vacation, to say the least.

And it would only become more and more...

..._Interesting._


	4. Day Two, First Part

Raven awoke second, after Cheshire.

The odd thing was, Cheshire was _nowhere_ to be found. While it was fairly usual for the masked girl to silently come and go as she pleased, Raven couldn't conceive of where she had gone at this time of the morning. It wasn't even fully sunrise yet!

With a sigh, Raven gently rubbed some sleep from her eyes and looked through the fridge. Retrieving the carton of orange juice and taking a glass from the cupboard, the indigo-eyed girl calmly poured herself a glass and set the carton back in its place. It was nice to have some time to enjoy herself before the others woke up.

Next to wake up were Kole and Starfire, in close succession. Kole began fixing breakfast for everyone, while Raven gently convinced Starfire not to get involved with the cooking. "Also, Friend Raven," Starfire asked, "Have you seen Friend Cheshire? She was not in her room, and I do not see her outside of this building." Everyone in the kitchen was a bit on edge. For reasons none of them could place, there was a distinct feeling of something being..._Off_.

Soon enough, a half-asleep Jinx entered the kitchen as well. The normally whimsical girl sat heavily in the chair next to Raven and buried her face into a couple of pillows she had brought with her. Despite herself, Raven couldn't help but ask. "What's wrong, Jinx? Wake up on the wrong side of the bed?" She met Jinx's caustic glare evenly.

After a minute or so of incoherent muttering, Jinx finally picked her head up and stared flatly at Raven. "Oh, nothing's wrong," Jinx said with a harsh sarcastic edge. "Certainly not having _bizarre dreams_ from being _stared at_ by _Starfire and Kole while you left me TIED UP AND HANGING FROM A TREE __**UPSIDE DOWN AND TOPLESS!**_" Panting, Jinx ignored the shocked stares that Kole and Stafire gave her. "I don't blame you two," Jinx sighed. "If anyone, I blame that little sneak Cheshire. Lucky for her she left my top in the bedroom. And it just _figures_ that she'd disappear after what she did to me." Yawning, Jinx got up and left towards the bedroom with her two pillows in tow.

Not bothering to look over her shoulder, Jinx said plainly, "Tell Cheshire that revenge is on its way for her. In the meantime, I'm going back to - ! ...Bed..." In that instant, a shadow of incredible speed had leapt down past her from _atop the fridge_ and gone front-flipping out the window to dash off. As Kole, Starfire, and Raven stared blankly at Jinx's stunned frame, they could help but turn their gazes downward.

Slowly, Jinx turned around, face lit up in a blush. "D...Did...Was...Was that...Did...Am I...?" All three of the other girls nodded slowly. Looking down, Jinx's fears were confirmed. Desperately covering her front and back with the pillows she had brought, she wailed loudly, "_Please_ get them back for me! I'm just so, so - _AAAAAAAAAARGH!_" Still trying to cover herself up, Jinx ran into the bedroom.

Eyes fixed on the doorway that Jinx had run to, in time, all of the girls turned their gazes up to where the shadow had leapt from. Starfire and Kole visibly paled, while Raven merely furrowed her brow while placing her long-finished glass of orange juice into the sink. "Cheshire's pretty slim, but how did she even _fit_ up there?"

Come to think of it, Raven _had_ felt a chill go up her spine when she was getting the carton out of the fridge and again while she was putting it back...She had thought it was just having to get something from a cooled fridge while in a _frickin' bikini_, but apparently, her empathy had picked up on Cheshire without her knowing it.

Once she decided that there was nothing else for it, Raven went over to Starfire and Kole. "If you two could, please calm Jinx down. Make her laugh, tell her a story with a happy ending, do _some_thing, please." Exuding her soul-self, Raven's eyes glowed.

Meanwhile, as Starfire rushed off, Kole looked up to Raven softly. In a fairly pleading voice, she asked, "You're not going to..._Hurt_ Cheshire, are you?" Her eyes seemed fearful.

Her own indigo pools softening, Raven dismissed her portal to kneel down closer to Kole. "I would never hurt her," she said softly. "I just want to make sure she stops doing this to Jinx."

Their eyes met for a moment. Kole smiled. "Thank you. We'll cheer Jinx up!"

As she dashed into the bedroom, Raven smiled.

In the a matter of moments, she was gone.


	5. Day Two, Middle Part

"...This is just _ridiculous_, I swear."

Hovering above the island, Raven had extended her powers of empathy as far as she dared to try and pick up Cheshire's aura. All she had picked up were a few small animals and the rest of the girls still in the shack. Either Cheshire was hiding herself just to spite her, or..._I see_, Raven mused to herself. _That_ could _be it._

If Cheshire was as wholly devoted to her arts of stealth as she always seemed, it was very likely that she wasn't hiding her presence intentionally. Though not something Raven would be willing to place money on, there still remained a distinct possibility that this level of 'presence masking' was just second nature to the masked girl she was looking for.

"So," Raven muttered. "Guess there's nothing else for it, then." Another use of her soul-self and Raven was down on the forest floor. This was the only place Cheshire could have hidden herself so perfectly - Starfire and Kole had mentioned seeing a cave far up on the mountain in the island's center, but even Cheshire couldn't have made that ascent in this amount of time. Even if she had gotten there, Raven would have easily spotted the girl climbing up. Thus, she had to be somewhere in this forest. It would be easy enough to locate her in such a small square area/

Yes. Easy. Raven just had to find a _young ninja prodigy_ in the middle of a _miniature rain forest_ which she had _no idea as to the layout of_. "I just hope this is rock bottom for this trip," Raven muttered. All that she had to do was convince herself: _It can only improve from here on out. It can only improve from here on out._ She proceeded to carefully walk until she found a dirt path - Making sure not to catch the _confounded bikini_ on any outreaching branches.

"Okay, Cheshire, you've had your fun," Raven shouted. "It's time for you to come out! Jinx is _really_ upset, and doesn't deserve you treating her like this!" Her voice took a sharpened edge. "You need to come out _now!_"

All of a sudden, several birds took flight from the treetops. Shrieks from some kind of monkeys could be heard off in the distance. What distinctly resembled a snake's hiss emerged from the bushes nearby.

Raven gulped nervously. "P..._Please?_ Please come out, Cheshire?" Arms wrapped around herself protectively, Raven started walking for the beach. Meanwhile, a figure went unnoticed by her in the trees directly above.

Sat on a tree branch, Cheshire gazed down at Raven through her mask. Shrugging, the girl proceeded to lift up the lower half of Jinx's bikini that she had once again stolen.

Cheshire proceeded to stretch the article in different directions repeatedly to entertain herself.

Meanwhile, Raven tried to shake a vine off of her ankle.

**...**

"...And then the _snecklark_ said to the _umplekk_, '_snarfalsk plukthoorg ublefk!_' Ahahah!"

Whilst Starfire broke down into laughter, Jinx and Kole stared blankly. Jinx was still trying to cover her dignity with the pillows from before, while Kole gently patted her on the shoulder. Kole said in the brightest voice she could manage, "It's okay, Jinx! Raven will be back soon with your...Your...Bikini." She blushed slightly at how much she had seen of Jinx. This was _after_ how shocked she had been of what she saw last night.

Sitting up again, Starfire rose to her feet. "Friend Jinx, I will not let you tolerate this by yourself! If it would make you feel any better..." She began to fiddle with the left tie of her bikini bottoms. Flinching, Jinx quickly reached out to stop her. However, this left her backside uncovered.

Quickly looking away, Kole pretended she hadn't seen anything. Face held down and lava hot with a blush, Jinx silently slid the pillow over to cover herself again. Not sure what to do, Starfire promptly sat back down and kept quiet. Eventually, she and Kole looked over at each other. Starfire inclined her head towards Jinx. Kole pointed at herself in disbelief. Starfire nodded to encourage her. Kole nodded back unsurely.

"Okay, Jinx," she began, "I...I was working on a joke to tell Gnaark. He always thought I was really funny." At Jinx's hopeful look, Kole became more confident in herself. Clearing her throat, she began, "Did you ever hear about the hunter who did a really bad grizzly impression?" Jinx shook her head.

Kole smiled. "No one could _bear_ to be around him!" She held her arms out dramatically. Jinx and Starfire stared at her - Starfire in confusion, Jinx with just flat disapproval.

"Um, Friend Kole...Was the hunter of your joke part-bear, or...?" Starfire scratched her head.

Jinx sighed. "No, Kole. That's just...That was...I appreciate it, but..._No._"

Head bowed, Kole twiddled her thumbs embarrassedly.

Kole looked up hopefully. "...Knock knock."

Jinx sighed quietly. "Who's there?"

Kole smiled. "Orange!"

"_Very_ no, Kole."

"Awh."

**...**

After Raven had gotten caught on a few more vines - The last of which she couldn't escape from - Cheshire dropped down and skillfully undid the vine without damaging Jinx's bikini bottoms still in her grasp. Whilst Raven massaged her sore ankles, Cheshire amused herself by twirling Jinx's bikini around in circles.

Once she was back on her feet, Raven said sternly, "This is _horrible_ treatment you've been giving Jinx. As soon as we're all at the beach shack, you two are going to sit down, settle your problems, build a bridge and _get the hell over it._" Secretly, Raven felt a twinge of embarrassment that she had let a curse slip out. However, it seemed to get through plainly to Cheshire, who gazed up at her.

Silent for a few moments, Cheshire gently placed the lower half of Jinx's bikini in Raven's hands. The young sorceress said in a gentler tone, "Thank you, Cheshire. I'm sure you can find some other way to amuse yourself - Just _please_ stop doing this to Jinx. It may be fun to you, but she's very upset." Turned away, Raven held the article of clothing in front of herself and awkwardly cast a spell to send them back to the beach shack.

Meanwhile, Cheshire stared at Raven in an odd way. Closer and closer, she moved in. As Raven turned back to face her, Cheshire gently gave her a hug. Gently returning the gesture, the older girl said, "I get it. Apology accepted. But it's Jinx who you need to apologize to. Just come back later - Jinx might need more time to cool off." Pulling away, Raven began to hover into the air.

Cheshire waved goodbye, one hand slightly out behind her. Smiling, Raven waved as well and slowly hovered back towards where the others were staying. There was almost something a bit off, but Raven shrugged it off.

At least Cheshire's bikini theft problem was finally over.


	6. Day Two, Last Part

**Author's Note:** I promise, Cheshire's bikini-snatching antics will end this chapter. I intend to start into the real plot after this. I know such comedy is utterly banal for some readers, but...

...It's also fun to write. Carry on.

**...**

Around midday, the beach shack's mood had decidedly lightened. With Jinx's bikini returned to her, the tension that had permeated the shack was now dissolved. They just had to wait for Raven to return.

Yet when she returned, tension was also soon to return.

Phased through the wall into the bedroom, Raven said plainly, "The bikini thefts are over, and Cheshire promised that she'll try to talk things out when she comes back, Jinx. I just thought it'd be better if you two were separate for a while longer." At everyone's shocked gaze, Raven's brow furrowed. "Why are you all staring like...That...?" Kole had abruptly turned into a reflective crystal to show her.

The loud shriek that broke out of Raven lead to an entire flock of birds to take flight in pure terror from the jungle nearby once again. As she desperately covered her front and back with both hands, growing anger caused Raven's soul-self to manifest in an agitated form with oblique, unstable edges. Jinx giggled uncontrollably - "Looks like Cheshire hasn't _completely_ given up the bikini thefts, hmmm, Raven?" Unable to stop herself, Jinx broke down into laughter.

Head down, Raven's soul-self continued to ripple and distort. Carefully, Starfire approached her old ally. "Friend Raven...Though it did not appease Friend Jinx's displeasure, if it would help you at all to get through this trial, I will gladly burden the embarrassment with you!" Raven had the presence of mind not to move and stop her friend. Instead, she formed a barrier around Starfire's hand to discourage the Tamaranean from undoing the lower half of her bikini. Jinx had fallen onto a bed next to her from laughter.

Soon, Raven was convinced to sit down. With some coaxing, the young sorceress agreed to adopt Jinx's method of covering herself with a couple of pillows. In the meantime, Stafire had flown to the rough location where Cheshire had been found, which Raven had conveyed to her via empathy. Jinx and Kole stayed with Raven to comfort her. Both girls alternated in trying to talk Raven out of her angered state. All they got for their efforts were flat stares.

It was once again time for Jinx to try and break Raven's intensified gloom. After some thought, the fey girl got an idea, and sat down next to Raven. "Say, Raven. You've heard of Hermes Trismegistus, right?" As Kole gave her a confused look, Jinx explained to the side, "Trismegistus is the title. In English, he'd be called something like 'Thrice-Great Hermes.' I'll try to explain later." With Kole nodding, Jinx looked back to Raven.

The gloomy heroine stiffly gave a couple of short nods. Deciding to go with it, Jinx said, "Well, then I take it you've heard of the Tabula Smaragdina?" Another aside to Kole: "_The Emerald Tablet._" Kole silently nodded and allowed Jinx to turn back to Raven. Said dark mage gave only more curt nodding as her reply.

Jinx went on to say, "What if I told you that a portion of its secrets might be hidden in the vicinity of this island?" Raven turned and stared full at her. "I don't know for sure," Jinx said, "But right before the mess with the Brotherhood of Evil started, Headmaster Blood was planning to sortie myself and the rest of the H.I.V.E. Five to search the approximate ten kilometer area of sea that this island is within.

"If we get a chance," the cat-eyed girl said while trying to pick her words carefully, "We could try to do a little investigation before our vacation is over. Would that make you feel better?" To her quiet delight, Raven gave a series of more fluid, calm nods. Jinx clapped merrily. "Great! This could be just the thing to cheer everyone up!"

Moving aside, she allowed Kole to take a seat next to Raven. Seeing that the grayskinned girl was becoming a bit morose once again, Kole desperately tried to think of some way to cheer her up. Her face brightened up as a thought came to her.

"Okay, Raven! Listen to this!" Raven levelled a blank stare on her. "Did you ever hear about the hunter who did a - " She narrowly blocked a pillow thrown by Jinx. "Okay, okay! No more jokes! I got it!" Kole turned away with a quiet 'hmph!'

After an awkward silence, the group could hear the sound of high-speed flight approaching. A distinct impact outside, and a certain girl stomped furiously into the bedroom.

Dripping with some kind of water, bereft of her bikini top, eyes aglow with green, Starfire fumed jerkily, "Friend Cheshire...Is...Is being...Completely..._Completely_ unreasonable!" Her hands were clenched tightly into fists at her sides.

"Friend Cheshire stole the upper portion of my Earth swimwear while I was not looking, and then pushed me into a _cold_ stream!" She proceeded to stomp on the floor in impotent rage. Raven immediately covered Kole's eyes to prevent her from seeing Starfire's..._Other_ motions that resulted from this tantrum.

Sighing, Jinx said plainly, "Well, looks like Cheshire wants this to be an all-out war. I just want to know why the lunatic started all of this - With _me_, no less!" She abruptly jumped at a soft, female voice behind her.

"I started this because my mask _isn't_ stupid." Immediately, Jinx spun around to attack the intruder. However, she froze upon seeing who it was.

Cheshire continued in her soft voice for all of the shocked girls to listen. "This mask is _very_ important to me, and as soon as you met me all those years ago, the first thing out of your mouth was: _What a __**stupid**__ mask._ Half of the time we ever met after that, you were always greeting me with a comment on how you thought my mask was stupid. Over and over again, you wouldn't let up. No one at the H.I.V.E. _ever_ let up. Even after we both ended up with the Titans, you _still_ never apologized. it really, really hurt, Jinx." Abruptly, she tossed two fluttering scraps of cloth onto the bed.

Jumping, Raven abandoned the two pillows covering herself to grab for her bikini's lower half. Likewise, Starfire lunged for her bikini top. Kole turned away with a blush on her face, but luckily, the two managed to get back the lost portions of their swimwear without colliding into each other to make this even more awkward.

Gaze focused on Cheshire with softened eyes, Jinx spoke in a quiet voice. "I'm _so_ sorry, Cheshire," she practically murmured. "I forgot all about it...And if I ever said something like that to you, I'm sure I didn't mean for it to have an impact on how you felt. I guess I was used to other students at the H.I.V.E. blowing those kinds of stuff off...Like _that's_ any excuse, though..." She was surprised as Cheshire gave her an abrupt hug.

"I should really apologize, Jinx; not you," Cheshire said. "For being a 'heroine' now, it was _so_ immature of me to get hung up on what others thought from so long ago." Even after the others assured Cheshire that she was forgiven, she didn't seem to forgive herself.

The masked girl said calmly, "The way I was raised, it's only just desserts for someone to return an equal action for mistreatment like this from an antagonist like me. You may do what you like to assure that I earn my forgiveness." She looked around at the girls. "What?"

Jinx and Stafire had broken down into giggling. Kole's face was absolutely red-hot with a blush. Cheshire turned to look behind herself - Nothing there. Were they all laughing at _her?_

"I don't get what - ...You're all...Staring...At..." What looked like gold-spotted green cloth was held lightly in Raven's hands. "Raven, you _didn't_." Cheshire looked down at herself.

Oh _God_ Raven had. Any blush hidden by her mask, Cheshire covered herself desperately. Raven began to grow a nefarious smirk.

"You should only have to go until nightfall to make up what you've put us through," Raven said with a dark glee. "If you follow through some requests, you'll get your bikini back faster." Cheshire nodded rapidly, stunned back into her usual silence.

Jubilance shining in her eyes and ringing in her voice, Jinx spoke up first. "Make me a mango smoothie in the kitchen!" She watched as Cheshire tried to back into the kitchen while still covering up what was left of her dignity.

"I don't think you can make a smoothie with your hands occupied covering up! If you want to have your bikini back sooner, you'd better get to it!"

Reluctantly uncovering herself, Cheshire began to gather what she needed to make a smoothie for Jinx. She looked out to read the sun's position in the sky hopefully.

After all of this, it was only 9:30 A.M. And the sun set in this area at 8:30.

_Crap in a bucket._

Jinx was giving catcalls as Cheshire worked.

To be perfectly fair though, it _was_ her own suggestion for penance.

_Me and my big ideas on right and wrong, _she cried to herself mentally.

At least no one could tape this.

...Right?


	7. Interlude: In The Night

**Author's Note: ****WARNING.**

**The following chapter is **_**precisely**_** the kind of reason why I rated the entire fanfic "M." This chapter contains graphic yuri and subjects that readers may strongly disagree with.**

**While the following chapter will tie into the fanfic's main plot, any reader who does not want to view such material will not have trouble piecing together the content's part in the overall story's plot. It is encouraged to skip ahead if you do not want to see this kind of material.**

**However, for those of you who read on: Know that after this, the story will begin to depart from purely lighthearted fanservice-y slapstick fun.**

**There will be one other Interlude chapter bearing similar material, but otherwise, this is where the horndog fodder comes to an end.**

**...Mostly. For the larger part. Don't come bitchin' to me if you read this chapter and are offended by it.**

**I plainly warned softhearted, **_**noooble**_** folks what to expect.**

**Now, let us proceed.**

**...**

"Mmmmm..."

When Raven awoke blearily, it was quite dark. She tried to move, but found each of her limbs spread out and secured tightly. Eyes flying open, she tried to shout. "Mmmph! Mmmh?" Something distinctly salty gagged her mouth. It felt like plastic...A familiar giggle sounded.

"Pretty creative to use your bikini like that, huh, Raven?" Was that _Jinx?_ Eyes roving about, Raven indeed spotted Jinx standing beside her. As her gaze flickered down, Raven's face burned red in embarrassment. Not only were her ankles and wrist bound, but her nude body was completely and utterly exposed.

Another giggle from Jinx. "Oh my, Raven," she purred, "Were we not expecting this?" Face lowered down to Raven's ear, Jinx whispered: "I just felt that thanks were in order, after you helped stop all the troubles with Cheshire." Closer and closer, she leaned in towards Raven. The bound sorceress desperately attempted to pull away, but Jinx immediately wrapped one hand underneath her jaw to stop _that_.

To Raven's horror and shame, Jinx began sucking and nibbling lightly on her earlobe. Moaning and whining, Raven squirmed in futility. Her mind spun with confusion and humiliation. As Jinx began to work her tongue and teeth lightly down Raven's neck, another feeling began to obfuscate Raven's thoughts: As much as Raven despised the notion, this attention from Jinx was turning her on like she had never felt before. While Jinx focused on Raven's collarbone, the dark heroine prayed that Jinx wouldn't discover her growing arousal and would eventually leave her be.

Raven tried to ignore as Jinx moved lower. But it quickly became clear where Jinx was going. _Oh no, oh no, no, no,_ Raven thought to herself, _Jinx, don't do it, not there, anything but that!_ A low whine broke through her gag as Jinx hovered over Raven's left breast. Smirk widening, Jinx brought her index finger silently over. Whines growing ever louder, Raven could do nothing as Jinx stroked her fingertip against one dark gray nipple. It was only a matter of moments before the nub of flesh was erect.

Jinx giggled. "How cute! The moody girl is sensitive to this kind of stuff, hmmm?" She lightly teased Raven's nipple outward between her fingertips. The fey girl clearly relished every strained moan and whimper out of Raven's throat. "Oh my! I wonder what would happen if I did something like..." In an instant, she was atop Raven and straddling her abdomen. "...This?" Her face lowered down towards Raven's left breast once again.

Moans and sighs rippled out of Raven without cease. Jinx's licking and suckling and nibbling caused her knees to quiver violently. As the pinkhaired girl continued, the shaking continued until it had taken hold of Raven's entire lower body. Electric tingles of ecstacy shot up and down Raven's writhing body.

By the time Jinx had pulled away, the moonlight cast a luminescent glow on the sweat beading all over Raven's body. Her flesh took up a nearly mystical silver sheen. All this time, and still as Jinx worked downwards, Raven tried desperately and repeatedly fail to make her powers respond to her pleading search for contact.

With horror, Raven felt breath on her most private of domains. Gazing down, her eyes pleaded with Jinx to bring this to an end before _that_. Yet Jinx merely winked, licked her lips, and slid her hands underneath Raven to grope her buttocks.

Unable to fight back, Raven screwed her eyes shut as Jinx proceeded to rob her of any remaining innocence. Tears streamed from her eyes.

It was only a little over a minute before Raven was gloriously pushed over the edge.

Then, everything faded to black with a rustle of wings.


	8. Day Three, First Part

It was raining.

Sneer marring her features, Jinx snapped, "I can't _believe_ this! Why does it have to rain during _our_ vacation on such a nice island?" As a slumped figure entered the room, Jinx smiled with a much brighter face. "Hey Raven! What were you dreaming about last night? You said my name a lot - Were you looking for me or something?"

At the spastic shivering that took hold in Raven, Jinx blinked and scooted her chair away. "Y...Yeah...I'm...Definitely not gonna touch _that_ one. O...Kay..." Gulping nervously, she turned to stare out the window. The only time she had seen someone react to Jinx asking about a previous night's dream was Mammoth - And being so_ focused on tact_ as the lumbering teen had been, there was no hesitation then to explain. If Raven was reacting like that, then...Jinx's usual blush marks started to spread into a crimson glow.

Looking between the two, Starfire scratched her head in confusion. With a shrug of resign, Starfire said in her chipper tone, "In any case, last night, _I_ dreamed of a memory from when I was back on my home planet of Tamaran! To settle a dispute with Sister Blackfire, as this was before the events which lead to my crashing on Earth, we engaged in an ancient, traditional battle between Tamaranean Royal Siblings: _M'phulkk Druhkalshahadd!_ So ancient, Sister Blackfire had to explain it to me, as I had never heard of it! In fact, I am surprised I am only just now remembering about what a spectacular event it was!" As she saw Jinx gesture for her to go on, Starfire nodded. "On Earth, I believe many urban females settle disputes in a similar manner: It is called here by the name 'naked mud wrestling!' Hm?"

Fallen against the fridge, Raven had abruptly done a spittake from the bottle of water she had retrieved. Now shaking much more violently, a series of strained, unusual noises emanated from her. On the other hand, Jinx was much more up-front: Banging her fist on the table as she dissolved into fits of laughter. Watching all of this with an odd expression, Starfire continued in a confused tone, "Is this ritual uncommon on Earth, as well? Sister Blackfire said that it was such an event for royalty to engage that there had to be many cameras to broadcast it across the nearby solar systems!" Her jaw set.

Now, Raven had to hold onto the counter for dear life as she guffawed uncontrollably. Likewise, it took every last bit of Jinx's self-control left to not collapse into the floor from her violent laughter. Once the two calmed down, they saw that Starfire was still confused.

"Okay, okay...Okay," Jinx managed to get out. "I think your sister managed to pull the greatest prank I've ever heard." She explained.

Shellshocked, Starfire gazed at Jinx blankly. "You mean to say...Sister Blackfire likely made such a ritual up...After seeing Earth culture."

Jinx could only nod in agreement, still giggling. Starfire continued. "And...All of the male Tamaraneans invited to watch...Knew about it." More shakey nods.

"And...This was broadcast...To...The entirety of...Eleven small civilizations?" Realizing this, Starfire's blush caused smoke to fume atop her head.

Quietly, Raven said, "And I thought I had seen the _worst_ of what Blackfire could do."

Having overheard all of this, a blushing Kole tried to comfort Starfire.

"Um...Um, uh...There...There...?"


	9. Day Three, Middle Part

Just within the main building, Cheshire gazed out over the beach.

Even with her mask on, just from Cheshire's posture, it was clear that she was deeply enjoying the view. From behind her, Raven quietly approached. The young sorceress gazed out wordlessly, before taking a seat beside Cheshire.

After a few more minutes of silence, it became clear to Cheshire that Raven was upset. Once the grayskinned girl noticed Cheshire's stare, she almost decided to blow it off. Yet something made her stop. "...I kind of...Had a dream last night," she muttered. "Since you're not very talkative, I hope you can keep this a secret from Jinx." Cheshire nodded. A shakey sigh, and Raven quietly began to explain.

By the time she was finished, the words were tumbling out of her uncontrollably. Eyes growing wet, she said in a desparing tone, "I _never_ have dreams like this! And it was with Jinx! Why _Jinx _ of all people? We're on better terms, but we're just getting to know each other! I, I, I..." a sob broke her voice. "I feel like...I've betrayed Jinx, somehow. Like I betrayed her trust by having a dream like this." If Raven was startled by the slender arm around her shoulders, Cheshire's quiet voice must have utterly shocked her.

"You're being way too hard on yourself," she said plainly. "There's no way you can control what you will or won't dream about." One of Cheshire's hands raised up to softly run her fingers through Raven's azure locks. The gesture served wonders to calm Raven's inner turmoil. "I've heard about how glad you were to have a friend in Jinx," she said, ignoring the suspicious flicker that went through Raven's eyes. "Just hear me out. Considering what little I know about how it feels to have a friend who really and truly connects with you, and considering other things I've picked up being around you, it was probably just that - If you get my meaning - Your mind overreacted to Jinx's friendship.

"I'm sure all the trouble I caused with snatching Jinx's bikini didn't help with that," she mused. "Nothing I've said is based on expertise in dreams. All I know is that for everyone who's tried to explain their own dreams, there's always another way of interpreting them. For all any of us know, your dream could be saying that Jinx will help you out somewhere down the road, and that you should keep close to her." The masked girl shrugged and fell silent. Those last words resounded through Raven's mind.

Could it really be? Could her dream have been using a twisted way to convey to her that she should stay close to Jinx for her own good? It wasn't impossible by any stretch of the imagination. Though farfetched, Raven had seen her magic react just as strangely to things she would have never predicted beforehand.

For a few moments, she simply rubbed at her eyes to clear her thoughts. This vacation was beginning to turn utterly distasteful. Sighing quietly, she said, "Thanks, Cheshire. You've really helped me out." She looked over at the masked girl.

The green lenses of Cheshire's mask stared back at her evenly. A few moments passed where neither said a word.

Raven sighed. "Guess you're back to not saying anything for a while?" Cheshire nodded in reply with a certain cheeky air.

"Whatever," Raven breathed tiredly. "Still, thanks for the help." After Raven hovered back into the main building, Cheshire went back to watching the rain.

At least nothing serious was going wrong with this vacation. Like super villain serious.

_Disregarding_ the odd feeling of apprehension she got from this rain.

It wouldn't do to fixate on a random sensation without case.

...Cheshire dearly hoped that was all it was.

**...**

High up above the island, something moved through the clouds. Serpentine and indistinct, what resembled a short pair of limbs stuck down midway along its underbelly. At the end of its 'tail' was some kind of fan, while a tapering head sliced through the clouds in front.

As soon as it reached the epicenter of the storm, the odd serpent bowed its head. Its eyes lit up in a bright aquamarine and a strange keening noise emerged from it. From nearby appeared some kind of large orb roughly as tall as an average human, with a pair of wings that resembled those of an eagle or falcon in silhouette. Additionally, this new arrival trailed what looked like a long, flat banner down from its underside, and had some sort of conical structure atop its head.

More and more of the spherical creatures appeared, until around eight were gathered in total. Each lit up with its own pair of circular eyes and gave a low cry in response to the serpent who had called them. At last, some humanoid being emerged from the centermost point of the fulminous gray clouds and ceased the group's clamor. Gesturing to the serpent, it made a noise that resembled bells ringing.

Following a minute or so of what sounded like a conversation in their bizarre voices, the humanoid which appeared to lead pointed outward with clear intentions. Each being that surrounded it gave a brief cry and took flight.

The serpent gazed oddly with its luminescent eyes, but quickly vacated the area of focused stormclouds in due course.

Once all of this swarm was gone, the humanoid being gave a ringing sigh.

Without further ado, it sank back into the clouds.

The storm faded soon after.


	10. Day Three, Last Part

With the storm faded, the girls decided to make the most of the sunlight left.

Quickly setting up a net, the girls began a ferocious game of volley ball - Starfire and Cheshire playing against Jinx and Kole. However, while the equipment had clearly been purpose-built to withstand superhuman strength, other problems arose while Starfire got a hang of the game's rules and technique.

As she had only played _very_ long ago and apparently for one short game - If she ever actually played the game before in the first place - Starfire was given the first serve to see how she did. Naturally, problems arose from this gesture of kindness. The problem didn't come from a _lack_ of skill on the serve: Rather, Starfire had the perfect angle, but far too much power. No one felt like retrieving the ball from wherever it had landed in the jungle.

Thus, a new ball was retrieved and Starfire was _carefully_ shown how to put a little less force in. After this, she made an excellent serve to open the game. Yet this would not be the end of the issues with their volley ball game. When Starfire gleefully saw a chance to spike, Jinx's reflexes immediately kicked in and she dragged a terrified Kole out of the possible range of destruction. The tumultuous noise caused another mass of birds to flee the jungle's treetops in fear for their lives.

Once the dustcloud settled and the ball was pried from its crater, Cheshire carefully pantomimed that Starfire should use less strength on the spike, as well. Starfire nodded with her usual child-like jubilance - "Yes, Friend Cheshire! I understand _perfectly!_" Thus, despite Kole's pleas that they choose another game, everyone continued into the next round. Yet when Starfire sent her next spike, Jinx knew she couldn't pull Kole out of the way.

Luckily for everyone, Kole was able to turn herself into crystal just before the volleyball hit. When the sand and dust settled, tiny little shreds of volley ball material still hissed faintly on the beach. Crystallized with a look of pure terror, Kole's arms were folded protectively over her face and her legs were shoved down to their knees in the sand.

Kole was still shivering after five minutes with Raven back at the beach house. The other girls had prudently abandoned their game of volley ball and were now hunting for sea shells.

The sixth exasperated sigh in little over a minute emerged from Raven.

She was pinned by Kole - Head in her lap, arms around her waist.

Raven's scowl never faltered as she patted Kole's hair.

"There there. It's okay. You're fine now."

**...**

By the time sunset had come and all the girls were back in the beach house, another rain storm had started up. Interference was preventing both the television and computer from making a successful connection.

With nothing to do, the girls chose to go to bed. For a while, Kole desperately tried to assert that she had heard something besides thunder on one flash of lightning.

Though the other girls convinced her otherwise, Kole still had trouble getting to sleep.

It would be proven the next morning that she had been right to worry.

But for tonight, Kole eventually managed to find sleep.


	11. Day Four, First Part

The next morning, everyone was shocked to see the beach.

Down almost the entire length of pristine sand was what disturbingly resembled a scar. Upon getting closer, they could see that it was a long trail of sand that had been melted into black glass by some incredible heat. Yet nowhere around them could any possible source be found.

For several minutes, everyone scouted the vicinity of the beach. Cheshire even headed into the small jungle, but returned not long after with news that it was empty of any possible culprit. No longer surprised at Cheshire's occasional breaking of her own silence, everyone was truly shocked when Jinx got her to elaborate on 'empty of any possible culprit.'

The young kunoichi explained, "All of the birds have taken flight. All of the snakes and the prey of the snakes are in their dens. I was looking right at a troop of monkeys from a single tree over, and they didn't make a peep. One baby got ready to cry, but its mother put a piece of fruit in its mouth to keep it quiet. Whatever it was, the animals of this island are very disturbed." While she had been speaking, however, Kole had spotted something a ways down the beach. Past even the melted trail's far end, there was something glimmering in the rocks that caught her eye. And Kole _knew_ this glimmer.

No one stopped her as she went to investigate. In the meantime, Starfire hugged herself for comfort. "I do not know much of Earth wildlife," she said shakily, "But on Tamaran, we have creatures that behave similarly to how Friend Cheshire has described." Shivers took hold of her body. "Creatures of my home planet only behave in such a way when there is something terrible and unnatural in their domain. I just hope that what this island's inhabitants fear is not out for us..." With a loud _eep!_, Starfire grabbed ahold of Raven - A loud noise had come from Kole's location.

In an instant, Jinx and Cheshire were ready to dash down the beach and aid Kole. However, the pinkhaired girl was instead rushing to the group, a delighted smile on her face. Once Kole reached the others and had caught her breath, her eyes lit up with even further excitement. "You won't believe what I found," she said breathlessly (Though now more from how thrilled her discovery had been). Hands out and open, Kole showed the others what she had found on her little jaunt.

Rested carefully in her palm was a tiny fragment of a meteor, in the rough center of which shone a silvery material. To no small amount of surprise from everyone, it became clear that a large, scintillating crystal lay buried in the piece of space debris. Kole went on to say, "There's plenty more of them beyond the coast! Way bigger ones, too! I don't know how I noticed them, though...I felt kinda drawn..." Looking into the crystal within the meteorite, Kole began trying to wiggle her finger into the semi-radial crack that exposed it.

Just about to say how dangerous it was to handle an unknown substance like that, Raven froze as Kole's finger made contact with the shining core of the meteor. A few brief moments of everyone silently holding their breath went by as Kole's expression kept stuck in pue shock. Yet immediately after, the crystal within the meteor exploded into brilliant light - At the same time, Kole wailed in pain.

Before anyone could do anything, the dark gray rock of the meteor had disentegrated and the crystal had turned into a brilliant sphere of light. In seconds, it had disappeared down Kole's index finger and spread its glowing tendrils outward from that finger's knuckle. Shaking and gasping for the pain, Kole wordlessy teetered back and forth.

Quickly moving to her aid, Starfire and Cheshire held onto the violently spasming girl and tried to get her to say what was wrong. Raven tried to move and help Kole in some way, but Jinx grabbed her shoulder and pointed towards the surf. "What is _that?_"

Gaze whirling out to where Jinx was pointing, Raven froze. Movement could be seen in the waves. A huge, muscular arm of dark gray skin was dragging something onto land, with its hand consisting of two fingers and two thumbs.

Soon, the immense girth of the horrible main body was dragged out. Broad and fat, with comparitively thin limbs and a plump tail resembling a tadpole, it was topped by a squashed, toadlike head. No less than a dozen odd-sized, bulging eyes spun towards the group.

Wheezes of exhaustion broke from the creature, before it pointed to Kole angrily. "It's...Mine," it rattled. "They...Shot me...And...She...Took...My...My..._RRRRRGGGHHH!_"

Breaking off into a roar, the beast hauled itself further up onto the shore. As its tail began to morph into a pair of legs, Jinx prepared herself and turned to Raven.

"Remember the battle plan we thought up just for fun a while back?" Raven nodded. A mirthless cackle then escaped the pinkhaired girl. "Looks like it'll come in handy."

Dark energy fields coalesced around Raven's hands. "Don't kill it. We need an explanation."

"So long as _we_ don't bite it first, hm?"

"That works for me."


	12. Day Four, Middle Part

The battle was at hand - Only Jinx and Raven could be spared.

Roars and groans escaped the huge beast as its metamorphosis completed. Now stood on a pair of broad, short, trunklike legs, it readily moved towards Kole. Still on the ground, staring blankly at the sky, Kole's entire body was wracked by spasms.

Soon after it began to approach her, however, the beast's footing was compromised. Without warning, the sand below its feet had eroded down into the sea and turned smooth as ice. Oddly-shaped hands digging into what hold it could, the creature attempted to drag itself back onto the beach proper.

Hovering close as she dared, Raven shouted, "Who are you? Where do you come from?" The beast howled angrily in response. "Kole found that crystal on accident! Why did you say she took it? Look at her!" By now, Kole's fit had become particularly violent. From time to time, her torso would buck into the air and she would give a loud yelp of pain. Starfire and Cheshire could find no way to get through to her.

Once it was back on the sand, the assailant snarled, "The crystals in those meteorites are _extremely _dangerous! I was shot down while transporting them!" Back to _his_ feet, the giant went on to say, "I don't know why its compounds reacted to that girl like this, but that crystal is used to force mutations! If its atoms get excited, it'll blow this entire island right off the face of your planet!" As Raven and Jinx stared in shock, the huge being tried to get closer.

By this point, Starfire had been forced to drag Cheshire high into the air due to the sparks that had begun to shoot off of Kole - While also staring oddly at the huge being trying to move closer. Now, Kole's eyes and mouth shot out violent beams of pale blue light. Her bikini was rapidly dissolving, and soon enough, an aura of searing energy had grown around her. Before everyone's eyes, the silvery crystal's lines steadily crept all the way across Kole's body.

Obviously terrified, the supposed transporter of the crystal shouted above the din, "This is _exactly_ what the Big Boss didn't want to happen! The Myk'jherr will be here to pick up the pieces after the explosion, and if they can get one of these crystals already in its excited state, they'll have no problem - _Ghkk._" Abruptly, a stream of blood had fallen from his mouth. Fallen stiffly to the ground, his entire body seized up for a moment. Eventually, he dragged himself back to his feet; everyone could plainly see a smoking wound on his back.

The wounded being tried to speak, but was too weakened to be heard above the sounds made by Kole's transformation. An ear-piercing shriek rose up from her form, leading Starfire to land out of pain. Raven and Jinx fell to their knees as the sound grew louder and louder. Yet just as the sound grew too loud to bear, it happened.

Everything was consumed by light. A curtain of blinding silvery-blue light engulfed the island and everyone on it. Nothing could be seen through it.

When the light eventually did fade, a silvery haze covered all.

It was now all silent.

**...**

Far and away from the island, upon a tiny vessel, a figure sneered at what he saw through the binoculars in his hands. "This ain't gonna be good."

Completely covered by either black robes or his brass armor, all that could be seen of his face were a circular pair of glowing red eyes. Held in his lap was some kind of gigantic rifle, the muzzle still faintly smoking from the shot he had fired.

With a look over his shoulder, the sniper barked an order at something which squatted in the corner of his vessel. "Oi. Useless Guhkyo. Your attempt to invade the moody one's dreams failed. Now's your chance to make up for it before Izkatra catches wind of it." When the lumpy figure named 'Guhkyo' didn't move, the sniper wordlessly leveled his rifle on approximately where the head seemed to be.

Startled noises of fear and terrified squirming took hold in the sack-like creature. It wheezed out, "Oh _very well_, Hunhruk. Seeing as how you deeply underestimate how tiring it can be to accidentally intrude on the mind of one who has been trained on Azarath. I'm lucky that I even made it out with my entire soul-self intact." He flinched as Hunhruk fingered the trigger. "I, I _get it._ We'll _both_ be paying for it if the crystal doesn't make it back to our Mistress. Just give me time to Jump." In time, some kind of rippling gray energy mass appeared around the one called Guhkyo. Snickers broke out of him while preparing to move with what seemed to indeed be a soul-self.

Hunhruk snorted. "What's got you in such a good mood? My shot didn't kill the big lummox trying to save those crystals, and you know very well that now, you'll have to keep to the ocean to avoid the Azarath bitch's aura recognizing your influence." Another look was taken through his binoculars towards the still-haze wreathed island before he continued. "Izkatra will be sure to know that we've got an excited crystal, and she'll have our asses if we don't bring _that_ back to her over the others. I don't see why you're in such a good mood." Somehow, a third hand emerged and started ratting through Hunhruk's cloak.

In the meantime, Guhkyo cackled gleefully. "It's simple as to why I'm in such a good mood, Hunhruk. I haven't gotten to sample the young girls of Earth yet." A set of five globular, luminous yellow eyes opened suddenly on his head. "I've always wondered on the _taste_ of little flowers on this planet. Gheheheh." Then, he was gone without a trace.

Eventually, Hunhruk found what he was looking for in the folds of his robes. Pulling aside the length of his scarf, the opening of a small metal flask was forced into a wide slot. Hungrily did the sniper drink down whatever was inside.

Seconds later, Hunhruk tossed the emptied vessel onto his vessel's floor with a belch. Replacing his covers, he snorted.

"Figures Guhkyo came to Earth for _that_. Maybe this'll be the mission I'm rid of that swine." Moving his sniper rifle, Hunhruk used the scope to get a better look at the island.

"I could off him myself easily...But Izkatra would just as easily off _me_." A shrug. "Things'll settle themselves."

As the haze settled from the island, Hunhruk chuckled mirthlessly at what he saw.

"The Wheel of Fortune spins. Death looms over...Whom, exactly?"

Finger on the trigger, Hunhruk's voice unnaturally deepened:

"And so, Judgment takes aim."


	13. Day Four, Last Part

"Eeeugh..."

As Kole rose up, she realized first that everyone was still mostly unconscious. Next, she noticed that a massive creature lay motionless, facedown in the sand and with smoke rising from a hole in its back.

Lastly, Kole realized that she was stark naked - Not a scrap left of her pink bikini.

Covering up with a wail, Kole got up into a kneeling position to try and protect herself more. To the sound of her cries, the others began to rise up blearily. As everyone else orientated themselves, Kole realized what had happened - Images from someone else's eyes came to her. Horrified, she still tried to cover herself up.

Once Raven awoke, she realized that she had been accidentally leaking her memories through empathy. Hurriedly sending an apology into the minds of the others and cutting the connection, Raven got up to look around. The island was still intact. Kole was perfectly fine - Well, despite the whole butt-naked thing. As for the supposed transporter of the crystals, he was beginning to groggily rise up as well.

When everything had settled down, this whale of a spacefarer was going to have a _lot_ of explaining to do to the girls. In the meantime, Raven hovered over to Kole. "Listen," she murmured softly, "I'm going to teleport you and Jinx back to the beach house. Try to find a bikini to put on, okay?"

Totally silent, Kole nodded with a blush on her face. After explaining to Jinx, Raven used her soul-self to carry the two off.

Upon returning, Raven found the behemoth alien coughing - But without any blood present. "Alright," she said in her usual neutral tone, "Now that Kole's alright, explain yourself."

Although a caustic glare from all of his eyes was sent Raven's way, the huge being sat up and began to elaborate. "Those crystals are formed in meteorites when a _very_ particular radiation hits them. No one's sure what this energy entails - The biggest theory is when a burst of gamma radiation travels through the Membrane Nebula to hit them, but like I said, no one knows for sure.

"When alpha particles are sent into the crystals while using them to focus a particular beam, extreme mutations take place in organic beings," he said. "There's a 30% survival rate, but as you can see of what resulted from me, many fringe scientists are willing to risk such a thing on hostages of theirs." He growled hatefully at the soft look from Raven.

"I'm warning you," he rumbled, "Don't give me those damned pitiful eyes when you don't even know my name. After eight years of seeing those eyes whenever I have to explain this shit, it makes me wish I hadn't survived that ray." Sighing, he glared with all of his eyes down at the sand. "...Sorry. I usually don't bitch out like that at women. But it's because of what turned me _this_ ugly that I'm able to make something out of life."

Following a few more minutes of silence, the huge creature continued. "My name is Jha'kurst. I was a fugitive wanted for eleven highjackings of government before being caught and taken in for 'medical experiments.' The twisted maniac who brought me in decided that I wouldn't be missed if I accidentally died from his new prototype for mutations. I survived, and now, I can adapt to just about any environment and can survive heavy weaponsfire.

"To apologize for the whole thing, the government that had caught me gave me some small time jobs to make a living," he went on. "The scientist who did this to me is still serving time. Overall, _most_ criminals look for these crystals under the name 'DFF-555556824.' That's a black market code for a mutation ray. However, they're also coveted by terrorist groups - Like the Myk'jherr I mentioned - For a property that one scientist tried to kill himself over."

Seeing Raven's look, Jha'kurst said plainly, "He was so guilty over having discovered such a deadly weapon that he wanted to die so no one could get it out of him. The Myk'jherr's black ops experts had other ideas. Many scientists have discovered the property, tried to hide it, and been cracked by some militaristic group or another. They make a bomb that'll ruin all technology and obliderate organic tissue down to molecules."

After overhearing this, Starfire and Cheshire approached. Looking between them, Raven decided to ask the question that was on all their minds. "...So this crystal becomes explosive when its atoms are 'excited?'" Jha'kurst nodded. "And before Kole's body seemed to accept the crystal, it was in its 'excited' state?" Another nod.

Starfire couldn't help but blurt out, "Then what will become of Friend Kole? She will not be disfigured or ill because of this, will she?" She sighed in relief as Jha'kurst shook his head.

However, all of the girls felt chills go up their spines from his next words. "She'll be targeted by the Myk'jherr, who are likely on the planet."

To her horror, Raven felt an immense fear from the beach house.

Seconds later, Jinx and Kole's screams reached everyone.


	14. First Contact

**Author's Note: ****WARNING (****again)**

**Below is the second chapter I warned of with mature content. This content will not be chapter long, but will continue until the first ellipse story-break.**

**If you don't want to read, scroll down until after the first story-break.**

**You've been warned.**

**...**

[ During Jha'kurst's Story ]

At the beach house, Jinx lay unconscious on the kitchen floor.

On her bed, Kole lay terrified of the figure that stood in the doorway. Its main body consisted of a sack-like mass of sagging gray tissue, with a round, featureless head placed on the front. This fat, misshapen head stared at Kole with five glowing yellow eyes - Leaving her body unable to move. She couldn't even make any louder noise than a low whine.

Across the floor, the grotesque creature slithered towards her. A chortling could be heard, before it spoke in a terrible voice. "What a pretty little thing you are," it hissed. "I have to retrieve the crystal from you...But why not have a bit of fun, first?" From its back emerged a multitude of tentacles. Kole's eyes widened in terror.

Still practically mute and utterly paralyzed, Kole could do nothing to fight back as her wrists and ankles were bound and she was lifted up. Hung in the air, Kole could do nothing as the monstrosity gazed up at her with glee apparent in its bulbous eyes. "Yes, yes...The little girls of Earth have such delightful bodies. Let's have a look at you..." To her further horror and disgust, Kole was brought down closer.

"My my," the creature breathed, making constant clicking noises, "Rather petite, are we? Don't worry - I do love a nice bust on girls, but in your case, I don't mind..." Kole was unable to see as the creature moved behind her. Yet she could certainly _hear_. "Oh me, oh my," it cackled. "What a cute little bottom you have!" A few tears formed in the corners of Kole's eyes as a warm, wet, sticky protuberance which suspiciously felt like a _tongue_ slid with agonizing slowness up and down both of her buttocks in turn.

Giving a slurp of relish, the monstrosity said with faux regret, "Oh, I'm _so_ sorry. Sometimes I can't help myself. Would you mind if I told you a bit about myself before we start?" Kole was horrified to find herself laid against the horrible _thing_'s body. Its head rested on her shoulder as it contorted so that Kole's legs were spread against it.

"How wonderful, mmm?" It ran its tongue up Kole's cheek - This time, regarding her face. "My name is Guhkyo, a member of the terrorist sect Myk'jherr. I suppose you've never heard of us on Earth...Well, that suits us just fine. You see, my pale-eyed beauty, we're a secretive lot." While he spoke, Kole got a hunch of something - Did he just call her eyes _pale?_

The horrendous creature known as Guhkyo went on to say, "That crystal you absorbed was _going_ to go through an extensive process to excite its atoms. Thus, it would be made into the perfect fuel for a bomb." He stopped to roll Kole's body around atop himself. Guhkyo purred, "My, you feel _so_ delightful, little one. I'll be sure to enjoy all you have to give me. This will be a long night for you." The sun was still high in the sky. Kole began to get an idea...

Unable to notice the slight glow Kole gave off, Guhkyo went on to say, "Luckily for us, somehow, your abilities excited the crystal greatly. Now, we just have to remove it from you and we'll have what we came for. Seeing as how _I_ will have accomplished it, I may be..._Rewarded_ by the Mistress." He groaned in delight, bucking Kole atop him. Kole felt a pair of tendrils come around her chest, but stayed focused.

Even as Guhkyo's tentacles proceeded to nuzzle and toy with her small breasts, Kole remained focused on her plan. Guhkyo continued with his rambling. "When we discovered that the cargo of that bastard Jha'kurst's ship had been drawn here by unknown forces, I used my _other_ abilities to investigate by influencing the sorceress's mind. I would have _loved_ to get closer to her than just that dream...But it was a delightful show, in any case.

"Now that we have _you_, we have all we need to build our weaponry. Hmmm..." Guhkyo sighed. "I wish I could spend more time with you, but unfortunately, there's not much time before the excited crystal settles into its permanent, hardened form. We have to make this quick..." He cackled, beginning to lay himself down flat.

Yet he yelped at an incredibly-hard fist crashing into his face. Stood up, Kole briefly took an inventory of her new crystallized form. It resembled her original crystal greatly, but now had several lines of pale silver-blue jetting down her limbs.

It would probably be inconvenient if this form would always magnify her anger and violent urges like it was now. Also, Kole could feel herself settling back into an immobile state.

"Alright," she breathed to the still-reeling Guhkyo, "I hope you don't mind if I take this chance to repress the memories you've left me."

Regardless, this form's mobility would be all she needed to take care of this wretch.

With a howl of anger, Kole was upon him.

**...**

By the time the others reached the beach house, they found a still-nude Kole wrapped in a blanket, held by Jinx, who tried to comfort her. Meanwhile, a faintly-twitching mass of gray flesh lay prone on the floor. As it turned out, Kole had been screaming in rage while beating Gyuhko, and Jinx woke up in time to cheer her on.

After Jha'kurst reiterated to the other girls what Guhkyo had said about himself to Kole, he knelt down to take a closer look. "I see now," Jha'kurst murmured over Guhkyo's immobilized form. "Your friend's abilities involving crystals were naturally receptive to the crystal that she picked up. It was chaotic, but the crystal has fully bonded with her." He got up and moved away. "I don't know how this will change her powers...But at least Guhkyo is incapacitated."

He spun around at an abrupt cackling. "Nooot quite." Though crumpled, leaking a transparent purple blood, and with three of his eyes closed tightly shut while also profusely bleeding, Guhkyo was hauling himself upright. Without warning, a mass of oblique, rippling gray energy formed around him. The field grew a number of wriggling tendrils that wrapped protectively around his frame.

To the shock of all the girls, they immediately recognized that kind of energy. Before anything could be done, Guhkyo was disappeared. With a tired sigh, Jha'kurst looked to the girls. "After this failure, Guhkyo's masters will kill him the minute he sets foot into their domain. He'll probably seek out his other allies for medical attention."

It was a tense next few hours, but Jha'kurst tried to reassure the girls that nothing would happen in the night. Something about how moving in unfamiliar terrain at night was too foolhardy for the Myk'jherr.

Although Jha'kurst kept watch, no one slept peacefully.

Least of all Raven.


	15. Day Five, First Part

The next day began quietly.

As there had been no extra swimwear to replace Kole's bikini, she had been forced to tightly wrap a cloth around her chest and a towel around her waist. Still faintly blushing, she gathered with the others as Jha'kurst scouted outside.

No one felt like speaking for a long time. Eventually, Jha'kurst returned with a look in his many eyes that could only be called grave. "it took a while," he said curtly, "But I managed to find my ship. Luckily, most of the essential systems were waterproofed in case of something like this - Including the communications." With a huff, he glared out over the sea.

"My superiors have decided," he said with a clear snarl in his voice, "That they cannot risk any extra forces to help us at this time. A member of the Myk'jherr called Lh'rus has preoccupied the rest of their forces in the nearby Sol System. Once they capture him, they'll attempt to reach us to help." A derisive snort. "That is, if it isn't too late."

Looks of unsurety were shared amongst the group. Cheshire and Starfire were still trying to give Kole what comfort was possible for them. Jinx was giving an unreadable stare out at the waves crashing beyond. And Raven...

...Raven was staring emptily at the floor, expressionless. She said quietly, "They still have the sniper." Everyone else flinched - Save for Cheshire...Raven continued. "If we step out of here, then this sniper will easily be able to pick us off."

Abruptly, Cheshire's soft voice broke in. "Then perhaps we need to try less _direct_ methods of combating this group."

Getting everyone huddled together, Cheshire explained her plan.

"First, Raven, I need you to..."

**...**

"God, Guhkyo is taking ages."

Sprawled on his back, Hunhruk had taken to sniping waterfowl right out of the air. Clearly bored out of his skull, the completely-obscured sniper randomly decided to turn his scope back on the island where the crystals had landed.

Focusing on he beach house, he muttered, "Can't see in there anyway...Might as well check on the other crystals." Hunhruk turned his rifle carefully and re-focused on the part of the bay where most of the meteorites had landed. "Huh. Can't see them. Looks like Guhkyo'll be working some of his fat ass off after those things sank."

Hunhruk paused for a few moments. He focused his scope in. Silence reigned for a few minutes longer. "Sank," he muttered. "Sank...Just now. Two minutes after I last saw them. After they all stayed in the exact same place the entire night. Just now sank."

...

His eyes flashed twice as bright as before. "Smells like shit," he growled. "The boss needs to know about this." Up on his feet, Hunhruk rushed towards the cabin of his craft. That is, until an abrupt shaking caused him to almost fall over. "What the _hell?_"

A third arm emerging from the side of his chest once again, Hunhruk pressed a button on the chest of his suit. Immediately, two jets unfolded from behind his shoulders and propelled him into the air. Flying high into the air, Hunhruk tried to get a bead on the assailant with his rifle. He snarled angrily - This rifle was _useless_ from so close.

Hurling the sniper rifle away, Hunhruk immediately drew a smaller gun with each arm. Rapidfire bolts of energy speared into the water until steam broiled upward. However, all of a sudden, the waves burst open to reveal a figure leaping upward.

Jha'kurst swung his fists together down in an arc for Hunhruk's skull.

Before the impact, everything Hunhruk saw faded to gray - ...

...Gray? Not black? "The hell is this?"

Hunhruk's lucidity faded.


	16. Day Five, Middle Part

"Did it work, Friend Raven?"

Starfire gazed hopefully to her long-time friend. Eyes aglow with white, Raven did not reply for a long time. After another minute or so, Starfire began to worry.

In the darkness of the small cave, everyone tried to keep close together. To make sure Kole wasn't hunted down, Cheshire had suggested that Raven bring them up to the cave in the central mountain. Meanwhile, Raven had been sending coordinates to Jha'hurst so that he could track down the sniper's location.

However, Raven's eyes abruptly flickered back to normal. "Something happened to the sniper, but Jha'kurst is safe, and on his way back to shore. We should be okay." She looked around her group. Starfire and Kole's faces lit up with joy. Cheshire seemed quite pleased with herself, despite not speaking.

Yet Jinx was off to the side, staring at something. Moving over, the other girls followed her gaze up the wall. "Um, Jinx," Kole said quietly, "Raven said that the sniper's gone...Can we go back to the beach shack?" Her cobalt-blue eyes turned up to the symbol that rested on the upper wall. "Is that a...Ring? It looks weird..."

Stunned, Jinx said quietly, "_Ourobouros._" Starfire and Cheshire looked at each other, before turning their eyes to Raven. To their surprise, Raven seemed equally as surprised as Jinx. Gaze turned over her shoulder to look at Raven, Jinx murmured, "I wasn't sure...But I guess this means it's true.

"There _is_ a connection between this island and the Emerald Tablet."

**...**

Down on the beach, Jha'hurst stomped down to where the other meteors and crystals had laid. However, it was to no small amount of terror that he found every last mass of space debris missing. Just about to try and search for Raven's connection, the massive being heard a keening wail behind and above him.

He turned just in time to see a winding shape, silouhetted by the sun, diving from the sky and on a collision course for him.

**...**

Below the waves, where Jha'hurst's ship still rested, the communication systems were flashing red and orange. A voice desperately shouted into the empty water.

"...Co...C...Colonel...Colonel Jha'hurst! Th...ssion was...lure! _The mission was a failure!_ You have to get...r sh...working again and flee with what you can!

"Our entire fleet was obliderated! There's only three survivors left, in emergency care! You can't defeat this thing!"

"Do not engage...rus! Do...t en...ge Lh...! _Do not engage - !_"

Static consumed the line.

**...**

Back in the cave, Jinx and Raven were talking over the symbol that had been found on the cave wall. Suddenly feeling extremely uneasy, Kole looked up to Starfire. "Um...Star?" The Tamaranean gazed down at her quizzically. "Who was it that Jhu'kurst mentioned before?"

Starfire tapped her chin in thought. "He had said that the being who was being fought and captured was named...Was...Its name was...Lll...Lh...Lhhhrrr..." She was obviously growing flustered. "What was his name...?"

Chills went up everyone's spines as a low whirring noise and a dull aquamarine glow interrupted Starfire from the front of the cave. A monotone voice spoke.

"Unit LR-0003722901. Most refer to me as Lh'rus." A single orange eye settled on Kole.

"Holder of the crystal, you will come with me."


	17. Day Five, Last Part

At the mouth of the cave stood a horrible machine.

Covered all over with plates of lavender crystal, it had a large, curved plate above the orange eye on its chest, arms that steadily broadened towards the hands, and similarly-proportioned legs supported the entire mass. Hung around its waist were many curious small objects, and the entire frame of the automaton radiated an aura of malice.

Gaze still focused on Kole, the machine droned once again, "Holder of the crystal, you will come with me at once." It took a few steps towards her. Immediately, a pair of rocks richocheted off its eye. Barely slowed, Lh'rus sent a bolt of energy towards Cheshire. With a crackle of purple, Cheshire was dropped to the ground - Paralyzed.

The terrifying machine continued to approach the immobilized Kole. Hand outstretched, it was abruptly stopped by a blast of green energy to its face. Several more blasts impacted Lh'rus in quick succession. However, the crystalline terror managed to get off a crackshot energy bolt to Starfire's shoulder. The Tamaranean barely had time to cry out before she dropped to the ground, paralyzed utterly.

Soon, Lh'rus was upon Kole. The small girl attempted to flee, but Lh'rus lashed out. Too frightened to even care as her coverings were lost, Kole tried to escape anywhere she could. Moving slowly behind her, Lh'rus attempted to fire another blast from its hand. Until a dark energy field enclosed its hand just as a blast was about to be fired.

A rumbling, groaning roar erupted from Lh'rus. Its hand was smoking profusely and appeared badly mangled. As Raven rose out of the ground and prepared to phase through Lh'rus, the machine suddenly grabbed an object from around its waist. Lifting up the iron sphere with countless wrought serpents encircling it, Lh'rus held it out towards Raven.

Crying out, Raven tried to hover back and away. Whatever the object was, it had the most horrible aura she had ever felt from anything inanimate. It was as if the sphere had diluted the fear and despair of an entire multitude of dying innocents.

Fallen to her knees, Raven pressed her hands against her ears to try and block out the cries of agony that began to emanate from the sphere. Tears streamed from her eyes. "Stop...I...I can't...I can't help you...I want to help...It's not my fault...It's...It's not..."

Abruptly, the entire cave was lit up with a pink glow. Eye flicking upward, Lh'rus stared at Jinx - As well as the ourobouros above her, which had ignited with pink sparks.

Streamers of pure energy were surging into Jinx from the symbol. Eyes pulsing with energy, Jinx howled in fury. "_Get the __**fuck**__ away from my friends!_" Her hand flew upward.

Though it was too bright and caucophanous for anyone to see what happened, when the others came to their senses, Lh'rus was nowhere to be seen.

Immediately, Raven dashed over to Jinx - Jinx, who laid unconscious on the cave floor.

"Jinx...Jinx, you...You...Saved..." Choked on her words, Raven hugged Jinx close.

Arms wrapping around her in return, Jinx chuckled.

"Yeah...I can kinda see that."

**...**

From Jha'kurst's quietly slumbering form on the beach, a serpentine shape rose up. Most of its body wreathed in a nebulous field of aquamarine energy, all that could be seen was its familiar silhouette - Fan on tail, tapering snout - And its glowing eyes.

As Lh'rus jetted back to the shore, hands crackling, the serpent cried out with its keening wail. All around the machine descended the eight spherical creatures from before.

Plainly seeing that its luck had run out, Lh'rus pressed a button on its gauntlet. It disappeared in a flare of purple sparks just before an eight-way blast turned its previous location into a crater with smoke pouring out.

Bowing its head, the serpent spoke in a human voice within its mind. _Lord, my Lord,_ it murmured, _We cannot keep this location hidden for much longer. These children are of those called the 'Teen Titans,' and have links to the 'Justice League.'_

For a while, nothing could be heard. Then, a soft, almost childlike voice replied. _Thank you for your efforts, Lorenz. We shall return to Ararat and mull over these developments._

After a few nods in agreement, Lorenz the Serpent raised yet another wavering cry.

In a rustle of wind, he and all of the winged spheres were gone.

Jha'kurst began to groggily awaken.


	18. Epilogue: The Next Concerto

No one spoke for a while on the airship.

After the request for only female League Members got through, the girls had been picked up from the island and debriefed. Once complete outfits were retrieved and Jha'kurst was ensured that experts on both the Martian Manhunter and Doctor Fate would be making a round to check on the situation, everyone was off again.

Other than Jinx and Raven, all of the girls were asleep. In the doorway, Wonder Woman looked over them with an odd expression. Looking to Hawk Woman in the control chair, she whispered, "Are you _really_ not upset about this?" She huffed at the other heroine's shrug. "The Teen Titans were formed entirely so that they could learn to fight crime on their own until they're ready for the League...But something like this is _insane!_"

Quicky looking back to make sure no one who was sleeping had woken up, Wonder Woman soon turned back to Hawk Woman. "And now, right after this, they get dropped right back into the middle of a storm. I don't know _what's_ going through Superman's head...I swear, it's a wonder if he ever _wasn't_ the age he is now."

Setting the ship to autopilot, Hawk Woman turned back around. "No matter what we may think, even if we try to protect these girls, we can't do anything to keep them from taking missions under stressful situations. Once they find out about the mission, they'll just take their prerogative to begin anyway." Her brow furrowed at the look on Wonder Woman's face. "And _no_. It would be against Leage regulations to withhold a mission from them."

Despite herself, Wonder Woman couldn't help but give a little chuckle. "Look at us. I'm brooding over these girls like a mother hen, and you're so upset that you're actually concerned with League regulations." She sighed. "Alright. Once they're all awake, I'll give them the mission they've been assigned."

Indeed, after Starfire, Kole, and Cheshire had woke up, Wonder Woman headed back into where they were staying. "Normally, the League prefers not to give missions to the Titans directly," she said, "But you all have proven ideal for a peculiar incident."

She proceeded to hand out a number of manilla folders, and began her explanation.

"You all are to investigate the Disappearing Town of Aylesbury."


End file.
